Man Who Fired Shotgun In Air: 'I Did What Joe Biden Told Me To Do'

A Washington state man who fired a shotgun to scare away people he thought were breaking into his car pleaded not guilty Wednesday, citing words uttered by Vice President Joe Biden as his defense.

“I did what Joe Biden told me to do,” Jeffrey Barton told KOIN outside a courtroom in Vancouver. “I went outside and fired my shotgun in the air.”

During the administration's push for new gun control regulations in the wake of the Newton elementary school shooting earlier this year, Biden advised people to arm themselves with shotguns, not assault weapons, because they offered sufficient protection. He also recalled previously telling his wife Jill Biden to “fire two blasts outside” from one of the family’s double-barrel shotguns should there be any signs of intruders.

Barton pleaded not guilty to one count of illegal aiming or discharging a firearm.

While authorities are investigating a possible connection to a teen party in the neighborhood, they reportedly found no evidence that car thieves were on Barton's property.